Four Mayer Brown partners named 2018 “MVPs” by Law360

Mayer Brown announced that partners Timothy Bishop, David Carpenter, Mark Hanchet and Paul Hughes were named “MVPs” by Law360. This recognition honors “elite” lawyers who have “distinguished themselves from their peers by securing hard-earned successes in high-stakes litigation, complex global matters and record-breaking deals.”

Mr. Bishop was selected as an MVP in the Environmental category for successfully arguing in a jurisdictional dispute over the Clean Water Act rule and “taking the matter to the Supreme Court for a definitive solution on the same day he had a second case accepted by the high court for review.” The publication highlighted how Mr. Bishop achieved victory for the National Association of Manufacturers when the Supreme Court held that the district court had jurisdiction over the Clean Water Act. According to Mr. Bishop, a Chicago-based Litigation & Dispute Resolution partner, the challenge was to arrive at a strategy to persuade the Supreme Court to hear the case. Mr. Bishop said the Court’s ruling will save time and money for his clients. (View article.)

An MVP in the Food & Beverage category, Mr. Carpenter was selected for advising Nestle SA on a $7.15 billion license deal with Starbucks Corp. The Corporate & Securities partner, who is based in the firm’s Chicago and New York offices, said the transaction was very different from a typical M&A transaction and his team “worked on having two companies reach an agreement on a relationship that will go into perpetuity.” Mr. Carpenter described the deal for a new “global coffee alliance” as “transformational.” As the article explained, the alliance will “bring the Starbucks experience to consumers’ homes as Nestle takes over its new strategic partner’s marketing, sale and distribution rights for most of its retail and grocery store items.” (View article.)

A New York-based Banking & Finance partner, Mr. Hanchet was recognized as a Banking MVP for his victories for HSBC Bank in actions brought under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA). Law360 noted that Mr. Hanchet led a team to a major victory for both HSBC and the international bank industry when US District Judge Denise Cote dismissed a lawsuit alleging that HSBC provided services to a Saudi bank allegedly tied to terror financing. The plaintiffs had filed claims under the recently enacted Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA), an amendment to the ATA. As both JASTA and the ATA remain relatively unsettled areas of law, Mr. Hanchet believes that Judge Cote’s decision was a watershed moment for the international banking community. (View article.)

As an MVP in the Intellectual Property category, Mr. Hughes, a Washington DC-based Litigation & Dispute Resolution partner, was selected for his victories at the Federal Circuit, including one that clarified the standard of divided infringement. Mr. Hughes told Law360 that his biggest success this year was “was persuading the Federal Circuit to find that lock maker Travel Sentry Inc., along with the luggage companies that license its lock system, could be jointly liable for infringing lockmaker Safe Skies' patented ‘dual-access’ luggage lock that can be opened by airport security workers.” Mr. Hughes represented Safe Skies after a lower court granted summary judgement of noninfringement to Travel Sentry and other luggage makers. He then led his client to victory when the appeals court chose to vacate the ruling and the Federal Circuit later declined to review the case. (View article.)